Thoughts on Christmas

This Christmas season has been especially meaningful for me. It's always been an emotional season time of year since my Dad passed away at the beginning of December when I was thirteen years old. The anniversary of his death always starts my season off on just a little more somber of a note.

This year it's been different. Yes, missing my daddy still, but other things have overwhelmed that particular feeling. Long-awaited answers to prayer have come, blessing have been received, and I feel like I've been inspired with thoughts beyond my normal thinking capacities. Here are some things that have been rattling around in my head:

I've been thinking about Jesus and His example. He set an example not just in coming and living a perfect life, but by the simple fact that He came at all. I think it serves us well to remember that Jesus Christ was a being living in the presence of God the Father, who came here and to some extent was subject to the veil and to the realities of mortality. He was a baby--not a baby with a perfect knowledge, but a baby who chews on stuff and makes messy diapers and can't speak and keeps Mom and Dad up all night. Granted, He was probably a pretty awesome baby, and I imagine he slept through the night pretty early and was easy to potty-train.  This was probably not an accurate depiction:







 

Now for us. WE are also eternal beings who lived in the presence of God the Father. The Savior was with us, and as a part of the plan, we were told we would come here and forget everything. I imagine we were frightened. Jesus reassured us that He would show us the way. He did everything we have to do, and more.

 

It is comforting to me to know that the Savior had to learn line upon line the same way we do. He probably had more tenured teachers than we do, like Michael and Gabriel and probably Heavenly Father himself, but still, He learned at an upwards curve and didn't know everything at once, just like us.

 

Another thought I've had is more tender. I keep imagining the Savior ministering to each and every one of us. I keep thinking that even the Christian world seems to think of the human race as something that just happens. Like we begin when our physical form begins--whenever you define that--so Jesus just loves these random blips of existence, because--why? He's just so awesome that He loves all of His Father's creations?  Yes, it's true that Jesus is so awesome that He loves all of His Father's creations. But it's more than that! HE IS OUR TRUE BROTHER! We were with Him before. We are His family. It's more intimate than just this all-powerful being throwing love at everything and seeing what it sticks to. He loves ME--because I am His sister. He knows me. He remembers who I was before, He sees how far I've come from that innocent, inexperienced being, He knows my strengths and weaknesses not just because He's  magically all-knowing, but because HE knows ME.

 

It's not mystical, it's simple: it is a family connection.

 

In the same way, I have a family connection with you. And you, and you, and the jerk in front of me on the freeway who won't go past 55 mph, and the telemarketer I will speak to on the phone tomorrow.  We are capable of loving each other as much as Jesus loves us--not because of anything mystical or mysterious, but because of that family connection. What is standing in our way is the natural man, blocking our capacity to love. We've forgotten our brothers and sisters.

 

"I Am a Child of God." The simplest of beliefs, with so much power, and so much potential. Imagine the power of knowing, really knowing, that every single person you interact with, is your family. So many  -isms would be done away with. There would be "no more -ites" among us, as it were. 

 

Peace on Earth--Goodwill to All Men

 

The message of Christmas, brought to us by a baby who was sent as a baby to show us EVERY step of the way back to our Father, the Father of all.

 

Merry Christmas to all of you!